14 Part VIII: Final Provisions

Author(s):  
Hobér Kaj

This concluding chapter assesses Part VIII, ‘Final Provisions’, of the Energy Charter Treaty. Article 38 of the ECT states that the ECT was open for signature only for States which had signed the European Energy Charter. Article 39 is entitled ‘Ratification, Acceptance or Approval’. The ECT is open for ratification, acceptance, and approval to States which have signed the Treaty as per Article 38. Article 40 builds on Article 29 of the Vienna Convention, which deals with the territorial scope of treaties. Similarly, Article 41 mirrors Article 15 of the Vienna Convention, which deals with consent by a State to be bound by a treaty expressed by accession. Article 42 sets forth the procedure to be followed to amend the Treaty. Meanwhile, pursuant to Article 43 of the ECT, the Charter Conference may authorize the negotiation of association agreements with a view to pursuing the objectives and principles of the European Energy Charter and the ECT. The provisions of Article 44 determine when the Treaty enters into force. Article 45 concerns provisional application, while Article 46 concerns reservations. Article 47 regulates withdrawals from the Treaty, the procedure thereof, and the effect of withdrawals. Article 48 is entitled ‘Status of Annexes and Decisions’; Article 49 states that the Government of the Portuguese Republic shall be the Depositary for the ECT; and Article 50 is entitled ‘Authentic Texts’.

Author(s):  
Arsanjani Mahnoush H ◽  
Reisman W Michael

The tension between the often urgent need for effective legal arrangements in modern international law and the much slower internal procedures for finalization of commitment to treaties has lead to the practice of provisional application of treaties. Many treaties provide for their provisional application pending final ratification by the states parties and the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties has codified authoritative practice. But two recent arbitral awards, in applying Article 45 of the Energy Charter Treaty, have created some confusion.


2019 ◽  
Vol 88 (2) ◽  
pp. 180-215
Author(s):  
William Joseph Simonsick

As the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (vclt) approaches its 50th birthday, the peculiar phenomenon of provisional application appears to be on the rise. Although previously confined, in the sphere of international investment agreements (iias), to the context of the Energy Charter Treaty, provisional application is increasingly seen in European Union multilateral investment treaties. Furthermore, the recent decision of Von Pezold has explored the open-ended nature of Article 25(1)(b) vclt, and the potential range of iias to which provisional application is possible. Subject to textual interpretation authorized by Articles 31 and 32 vclt, found in Kardassopoulos, Petrobart and the Yukos Oil tribunals, provisional application is a legal regime that can very easily lead towards unintended results. This article suggests the solutions of more careful syntax and grammar, and limiting clauses and changes in legal processes, to further mature provisional application jurisprudence.


2021 ◽  
pp. 58-62
Author(s):  
Veronika Shcherbyna ◽  
Ivanna Maryniv

Problem setting. Nowadays the problem of the provisional application of treaties can be described as actual. It is no accident that it has been the subject of the attention of the United Nations International Law Commission with the task of elaborating the most important problems of international law. Furthermore, the above-mentioned subsidiary body of the United Nations General Assembly recognized the need to analyze the provisional application of treaties, the need for the progressive development and codification of international law in respect of the topic dealt with in this article. Аnalysis of research and publications. Aspects of the problem of provisional application of treaties are reflected primarily in the works of in the works of I.I. Lukashuk, O.V. Kyivets, O.V. Pushniak, I.I. Maryniv, T. Leber. Target of research is to describe the legal institution of the provisional introduction of international treaties and to find reasons for its use. Article’s main body. The article is devoted to the question of the temporary use of an international treaty as a fundamental institution of international law. The study discusses the need for provisional application of treaties. Attention was paid to the works of legal academics, who had considered this issue, their works and summaries were reviewed regarding the question under consideration. The author analyzed the formulations of the article 25 of the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties. Legal aspects and shortcomings were considered. First of all, it was noted that there is no definition of the temporary application of international treaties in the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties and article 25 of the Convention had been criticized for being difficult to understand and lacking legal precision. In the article, the author noted that in general, the provisional use takes place before the entry into force of the treaty, when countries have not yet completed the necessary internal state procedures for its entry into force and have not internationally expressed consent to be bound. The author also stressed that the application of the treaty before it enters into force or will enter in the moment when it is implemented, the parties will address to their commitments and thus the object of the treaty would disappear. The author highlighted another legal aspect of the international legal institution under consideration is that, in order to implement the institution of provisional application of treaties, A special law and regulations may be enacted in domestic law (constitutional and legislative). What is more, the author mentioned that it is appropriate to devote attention to the work of the father of the national science on the law of international treaties I.I. Lukashuk. Conclusions. The author concluded that the institution of the provisional use of treaties is one of the key institutions in the law of treaties enabling the parties to urgently address cooperation issues. Another conclusion of the author of this article is that countries resort to this legal instrument under consideration for several reasons: urgent resolution of issues to which the relevant treaties apply; the desire of countries to adopt and immediately implement confidence-building measures; preventing time gaps in the operation of a number of international treaties, which have been successively adopted and replace each other on the same subject.


2020 ◽  
pp. 43-62
Author(s):  
Paweł Borecki

From time to time, there is a proposal in the public debate in Poland to break the 1993 concordat, and this has also recently been the case. However, in the current systemic and political reality of contemporary Poland, the issue of the invalidity or expiry of the Polish concordat is one purely for theoretical (academic) discussion. It is worth analyzing this through the prism of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties of 1969 and the Constitution of the Republic of Poland of 1997. The only hypothetical grounds for an annulment of the 1993 Concordat would be the allegation that it was concluded in violation of Art. 46 of the Vienna Convention, i.e. in breach of the rules of national law concerning the competence to conclude a treaty of fundamental importance. The Government of the Republic of Poland did not raise this objection within a reasonable time. There are also no circumstances that could constitute obvious reasons for considering the Polish concordat of 1993 as expired. One might try to defend the position that the concordat may be terminated unilaterally, despite the fact that it does not contain an appropriate clause in this regard. It can be compared to a friendship treaty. Such contracts are, by their very nature, subject to termination. It also seems that if need be, the Polish side might be able to terminate the concordat due to a fundamental change in circumstances, e.g. by referring to the rapidly progressing secularization process of Polish society. A very serious barrier to the termination of the concordat by the Polish side is the Constitution of the Republic of Poland of 1997. In Art. 25 sec. 4 it provides for the obligation to define the relations between the state and the Catholic Church, especially in the form of an international agreement with the Holy See. The hypothetical termination of the 1993 concordat would require prior appropriate amendment of Poland’s constitution and the consent of a number of state bodies. In the current legal situation in Poland, the termination of the treaty with the Vatican is very difficult in procedural terms, and is politically unrealistic.


Author(s):  
Thomas E. Webb

Essential Cases: Public Law provides a bridge between course textbooks and key case judgments. This case note summarizes the facts and decision in R (on the application of Miller) v Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union [2017] UKSC 5, Supreme Court. This case concerned whether the government could rely on the prerogative power to issue a notification of the United Kingdom’s intention to secede from the European Union under Article 50 of the Treaty of the European Union, or whether parliamentary authorization was required. There is also a brief discussion of the Sewel Convention. The document also includes supporting commentary from author Thomas Webb.


Author(s):  
Hobér Kaj

This chapter assesses Part I of the Energy Charter Treaty, which deals with definitions and the purpose of the treaty. Central to the functioning and proper understanding of the ECT, Article 1 sets forth relatively detailed definitions of key terms and concepts used in the ECT. In particular, there are two defined terms which are important: Article 1(6), which defines ‘Investment’; and Article 1(7), which defines ‘Investor’. These two concepts have been argued in practically every ECT award rendered so far. Article 1 also defines other key terms used in the ECT such as ‘Contracting Party’ (paragraph 4), ‘Energy Materials and Products’ (paragraph 5), and ‘Area’ (paragraph 10). Meanwhile, Article 2 is titled ‘Purpose of the Treaty’. Proceeding from the rules of treaty interpretation laid down in the Vienna Convention, Article 2 of the ECT is relevant when determining the object and purpose of the ECT. It should be noted that Article 2 refers to the European Energy Charter, which is also relevant when determining the object and purpose of the ECT.


Author(s):  
Hobér Kaj

This chapter discusses the interpretation of the Energy Charter Treaty. The ECT is a multilateral treaty during the negotiation of which approximately fifty States participated, albeit to varying degrees. It goes without saying that in such a setting, there are many competing interests to take into account, often resulting in ambiguous treaty provisions. Indeed, almost every dispute based on the ECT involves issues of treaty interpretation. The law applicable to the interpretation of treaties is international law, unless the parties to the treaty in question have agreed otherwise. For all practical purposes, the most important international document when it comes to treaty interpretation is the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties. Article 2(1)(a) of the Vienna Convention defines ‘treaty’ as ‘an international agreement concluded between States in written form and governed by international law, whether embodied in a single instrument or in two or more related instruments and whatever its particular designation’. There is little doubt that the ECT is covered by this definition. Article 26(6) of the ECT provides that disputes under it are to be resolved on the basis of its provisions and ‘applicable rules and principles of international law’. The chapter then considers Articles 31—3 of the Vienna Convention, which deal with the interpretation of treaties.


Author(s):  
Denza Eileen

This chapter looks into Articles 48 to 53 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. Article 48 states that the Convention shall be open for signature by all States Members of the UN or any of the specialized agencies or Parties to the Statute of the International Court of Justice, and by any other State invited by the General Assembly of the United Nations to become a Party to the Convention. Article 49 on the other hand states that the present Convention is subject to ratification, while Article 50 expresses that the Convention shall remain open for accession by any State. Article 51 enumerates the date of the enforcement of the ratifications submitted to the UN, and Article 52 states that the Secretary-General shall inform all States the deposit of instruments of ratification and the date of enforcement. Lastly, Article 53 states that the original texts of the Convention shall be deposited with the Secretary-General, who shall send certified copies thereof to all States.


Author(s):  
Casey-Maslen Stuart ◽  
Clapham Andrew ◽  
Giacca Gilles ◽  
Parker Sarah

This chapter explores Article 23 of the ATT, which considers the provisional application of states to the ATT. When signing, ratifying, accepting, approving, or acceding to the ATT, any state may declare that it will provisionally apply the key elements regarding prohibition of transfer and export and export assessment as set out in Articles 6 and 7 of the ATT, respectively. Such provisional application generally extends until the state becomes party to the treaty. This article is broader in scope compared to similar provisions in other disarmament treaties and is more far-reaching than provisional application as foreseen by the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties. The opportunity provisionally to apply core elements of the ATT may prove particularly attractive to states that are among the first to ratify the treaty or to signatory states whose domestic ratification process may be expected to be prolonged or delayed.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document